News and analysis on politics, human rights and civil society in Latin America by Geoffrey Ramsey

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

A Dubious 'Disarmament' in Michoacan

The Mexican government claims to have
reached a breakthrough agreement to “disarm” the vigilante militias of Michoacan
state, but the pact still leaves them with considerable degree of influence and
firepower.

El
Universal has a copy of the agreement, which stipulates that autodefensas
must register their firearms with the state by May 10, and incorporate by the
following day into either the rural defense forces or a newly-created Michoacan
police unit, to be called the “rural state police.”

While this is a victory for the federal
government, in reality it is far from a disarmament. As vigilante leader Jose
Manuel Mireles told newspaper Milenio yesterday, the groups will only surrender
their heavier weapons (the paper claims this includes heavy machine guns, rocket
launchers and surface-to-air missiles), whereas the AK-47 and AR-15 assault rifles carried by many members
will remain in use so long as they are registered. Translated from Milenio:

[The autodefensas] also agreed to register
the heavy and smaller caliber weapons that have not been accounted for by the
federal government; they will be put away and not be carried around in Michoacan
territory or used to advance on to other municipalities.Also, they will "institutionalize,"
or rather, their members will form part of the police or military state rural defense
groups. Those who do not enter groups recognized by the federal and state governments
"will hold onto" their weapons in communities or homes. Whoever fails
to comply with these guidelines will be detained starting May 11.

Regardless of whether they are incorporated
into legal police structures or not, any agreement that allows members to
retain weapons in safehouses seems bound to encourage abuses like the torture
and extrajudicial executions that rights activists have repeatedly
criticized in recent years.

News Briefs

In The
Daily Beast, Venezuelan journalist Marcel Ventura writes a biting critique of
President Nicolas Maduro’s deepening of the role of the military in government,
pointing to his record promotion of 200 generals in July and his nomination of multiple
military officers to serve as civilian cabinet members. Due to allegations of
involvement in drug trafficking, the rising profile of the military also may
have worrisome consequences for corruption in the country, Ventura writes.

The Mexican government has announced that
it will go
after money laundering suspects by adopting “kingpin lists” similar to
those used by authorities in the U.S. However, as the
AP points out, the Mexican lists will remain confidential, available only
to financial institutions, those accused of crimes and investigators.

Yesterday the White House confirmed that
Uruguayan President Jose Mujica will meet with President Barack Obama on May
12. In a brief
statement, the White House claimed the two would address mutual trade
interests and collaboration on health and technology, while Mujica has said he
plans on pointing out the U.S. and other wealthy nations’ “errors”
in the region. Spain’s El
Pais notes that Mujica has also strongly praised the U.S. ambassador to
Uruguay, Julissa Reynoso, for drastically improving relations between the two countries.

The New
York Times reports on the damage that ongoing wildfires have wrought on hilltops
around the Chilean port city of Valparaiso. At least 15 people were killed as a
result of the fires and some 11,000 were left homeless, according
to the AP. El
Mostrador notes that President Michelle Bachelet has announced she will appoint
three officials to head disaster relief efforts in the two northern areas
affected by the earthquake last week as well as another to oversee things in
Valparaiso.

In Foreign
Affairs Latinoamerica, the Inter-American Dialogue’s Michael Shifter profiles
U.S. involvement in the discussion around revitalizing the Organization of
American States. Shifter points to ways in which the Obama administration could
further American interests by engaging more actively in the OAS system, instead
of treating it as a “relatively minor instrument” for foreign policy, as it
currently does.

BBC
Mundo reports on Bolivia’s uniquely strategic position as a result of the
unrest in Ukraine. With the U.S. and European Union reducing reliance on Russia’s
exports in response to the annexation of Crimea, Bolivia may have found new
markets for its natural gas, though this is complicated by its lack of a
maritime port.

The Washington Office on
Latin America has a new report on the potentials and challenges of a
post-conflict political atmosphere in Colombia. It contains a comprehensive
update on the major sticking points of talks with FARC rebels, as well as
recommendations for U.S. aid following an eventual peace accord. According to
the report, the U.S. should increase aid aimed at improving state presence in
rural areas and supporting transitional justice efforts, among other
objectives. Spanish news agency EFE has picked up the report, and highlights remarks by author Adam Isacson, who calls for the level of U.S. aid to Colombia to return to its 2003-07 peak of $600-$700 million annually, more than double the current amount.

The Venezuelan government and opposition
Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD) are set to hold talks again this evening.
Unlike last Thursday’s dialogue, El
Nacional reports that the meeting will be held in private, and that the MUD
is expected to demand a law granting amnesty to individuals allegedly held
prison for political motives since 1999.

The L.A.
Times’ Vincent Bevins looks at the unique challenges posed by the decision
to host World Cup games in the Amazonian city of Manaus, a city that critics
say lacks the necessary infrastructure.

A new Ipsos
poll suggests that the two main candidates ahead of Panama’s May 4 presidential
election, Jose Arias of the ruling Democratic Change (CD) party and Juan
Navarro, from center-left Democratic Revolution Party (PRD), are in a dead
heat. Both have 32 percent support, while current Vice President Juan Varela in
not far behind with 26 percent.

About The Author

Geoff Ramsey works as a communications officer for the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA). Before joining WOLA, Ramsey worked as a researcher for the Open Society Foundation’s Latin America Program. His most recent work involved monitoring civil society advocacy for and implementation of 2013 drug policy reforms in Uruguay, where he lived for nearly two years. Prior to that he spent two years living in Colombia and Brazil, where he researched and reported on regional insecurity issues for InSight Crime. Any views or opinions expressed in these posts are the sole responsibility of the author. Email: gramsey (at) thepanamericanpost (dot) com